Book Panel Discussion at Soho Photo Gallery→
https://www.eventbrite.com/.../lets-talk-about-photo...
I am honored and so grateful to be participating in Erica Reade's book panel discussion at Soho Photo Gallery on November 12th from 4:30-6:30pm. I will be talking about my first monograph, DINING ALONE In the Company of Solitude (released by Daylight Books in June 2022).
Erica selected a wonderful group of women panelists who will speak about their respective photo books:
Erica Reade, Nancy A. Scherl, Cindy Trinh, Melissa Breyer, Sunny Leerasanthanah, Emily Sanchez Sujay and Womens Activism.NYC. Erica's work (and book also published by Daylight Books) will also be exhibiting her work in a solo show at Soho Photo Gallery.
Erica asked some wonderful questions at large. When I was asked about the cost to publish my book, I shared that it is indeed an expensive proposition. I explained that I had put some money aside over the years so that I would be able to do this. I also said that some things can not be measured by a monetary value. For me, this book has propelled the trajectory of my career path forward in ways that I never would have imagined. Part of my decision was that we were in the midst of a pandemic and production costs, shipping costs and materials were all being challenged. I liked the idea of having a publisher based in America even if the printer was in Turkey!! And in addition to the fact that production costs had risen across the publishing world, I also invested in a designer prior to making any publishing decisions. I simply wanted to envision how my book would look and then decide which path would be best for me (Self Publishing, or Publishing through an established Publisher). I might use an academic publisher for a project that would be suitable for that path. I would also be open to self publishing, in the future.
When asked what the greatest reward was that we gained from our books, I responded that it was definitely having people who bought my book write me some beautiful notes about my book. Equal to that, it was the fact that I feel as though I immortalized my late mother by including her portrait in this book. If that appears to be an exaggeration, certainly, I feel that I memorialized her. There is a long lasting reward for having published a fine art photography book. For me it is on many levels, but much of it has to do with this.
The panelists were also asked whether publishing a book meant that it was the end of their project. I responded that there are no fast and concrete answers to this. For me, I believe that if a topic is close to you, which this subject is, I will feel free to continue to make pictures of peopled restaurant interiors, as I see fit. That said, having published this book, definitely brought closure to me for actively working on this series.
